Coin assorter



in March 4 1930.-

E. P. DONNELLAN COIN ASSORTER Filed Sept. 16. 1927 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR I III l'dn a/riii'flmwallwa,

Tail- A TTOBNE Y March 4, 1930. E. DONNELLAN' COIN ASSORTER 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Sept. 16, 1927 I IN V5 70/? lawzrdfpommallzrq, @1 4, g

A TTORNE Y Patented Mar. 4, 1930 UNITED STATES EDWARD P. DONNELLAN, F BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO STANDARDJOHN-' PATENT OFFICE SON COMPANY, INOI, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK COIN ASSORTEB Application filed September 16, 1927. Serial No. 219,905;

\ pacity, and by means of which an assuredcontrol of the coins during separating movement 1s attained, and at the same time wear and tear of the mechanism is reduced to a m1n1mum; and, furthermore, the invention seeks to provide a novel arrangement of separating stages for the several denominations of coins so located that centrifugal force, developed during the movement of the coins to their respective discharge points, tends to assure the proper positioning of the coins relative to the latter so that said coins can not jump or carry over their proper drop out or separating stages. I

Other objects of this invention, not at this time more particularly enumerated, will be clearly understood from the following detailed description of the same.

The invention is clearly illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a central vertical longitudinal section through the novel coin assortermechanism, made'according to and embodying the principles of this invention; Figure 2 is a plan or top view of the same, viewed in the direction of the arrow 2 in Figure 1; Figure 3 is a horizontal section with parts broken away to show underlying construction; Figure 4 is-a diagrammatic sectional view extended on line 4-4 1n Figure 2; and Flgure 5 is another diagrammatic sectional view extended on line 55 in Figure 2.

Similar characters of reference are em ployed in the hereinabove described views, to indicate corresponding parts. 1

Referring now to said drawings, the ref- 5 erence character 6 indicates a bottom plate suitably supported upon standards or other suitable form of frame-work 7 so as to be disposed in a downward inclination from the horizontal of approximately Said bottom plate is provided with laterally extending ears 8 for conveniently affixing the same to'the standards orsupporting frame 7. Said .bottom plate is provided with a centrally dis-.-

posed depending bearing portion 9 in which is journaled a spindle 10. Suitably mounted in connection with the standards or supporting frame-work 7 is'an electric motor 11, the same serving as a power source for operating the machine. Connected with the undersidc of said bottom plate 6, adjacent to the bearing portion 9, are bearing devices 12, in which is ournaled a transmission shaft 13 having a pulley 14, over which runs a drive belt 15 which is driven from the motor 11. Fixed on said transmission shaft 13 is a drive worm 16 which meshes with a worm gear 17, the latter being fixed to the lower end of said spindle 10. Secured upon the upper end of the spindle 10 so as to be disposed above the bottom plate 6 is a hub flange 18, said bottom plate being preferably cored out or countersunk as at 19 to receive said hub flange 18.

Suitably secured to said hub flange 18 and so as to be rotated thereby is a primary carrier or conveyor plate 20. Also secured to said hub flange in a plane spaced below said primary carrier or conveyor plate 20 is a secondary carrier or conveyor plate 21. This secondary carrier or conveyor plate 21 is preferably countersunk in the base plate 6. Secured to the outer margins of the base plate dis a stationarysupporting plate 22. This supporting plate is of annular form and extends between the primary and secondary carrier or conveyor plates and concentric to the hub flange 18 so as to support the coins and secondary carrier orconveyor plates that thesaid primary carrier or conveyor plate rides flushly on the upper surface of said supporting plate 22 while the secondary carrier or conveyor plate rides in the space be tween thebase plate 6 and said stationary.

supporting plate whereby twopaths of movement for the coins undergoing the separating operations are furnished for purposes subsequently to be more fully explained.

Secured to the marginal portions of said base plate 6 is a receiving hopper'23, the flange 24 of which registers with the margins of the base plate and being attached theretoby means of screws 25 or other. suitable form of fastening means.

. hopper 23 are diminished in'height toward the upper side of the base plate 6 and the is provided with suitably disposed annular rows of com carrying or propelling recesses or, openings, which, in the form and arrangement illustrated in the accompanying drawings, comprise an outer row of recesses or openings 27 and an inner row of recesses or openings 28, said openings 27 and 28 being preferably slightly in excess of the size of the largest coin to be separated,'viz, the

half dollar, of course, it will be understood that, should it be so desired,v the inner row of openings 28 may be made of somewhat smaller diameter, the same preferably being slightly in excess ot-thesize of a quarter so that under such arrangement the outer row of recesses or openings 27 will receive and- I than a single cointr'avehng In or above the convey all sizes of coins from a dime to a v half dollar inclusive, while the inner row of recesses or openings 28 will only receive and convey the size of coins from a dime to a quarter dollar. 1nclusive. Therecesses or openings 27-28 are preferably provided with chamfered lips'L on their rearward sides relative to the direction of rotation of the primary carrier'or conveyor plate. The object of this chamfered di-li-being to reduce the thickness of the carrier plate. at the point of contact with the coin under compulsion thereby to a thickness not greater than the thick The 'walls of said single coin will be carried upwardly in each recess or opening.

In order' to prevent coins, which may be in the path of improperly positioned coins,

wherebyas the latter engage the disk they are dislodged and delivered back. into the lower portion of the hopper.,

The secondary carrier or conveyor plate 21 is provided with a corresponding outer annular row of pockets 32 and a corresponding inner annular row' of pockets 33 which lie beneath the recesses oropenings of the primary carrier or conveyor plate 20 and which correspond in number and location with the latter so that beneath each propelling recess of the primary carrier or. conveyor plate there is apropelling pocket in the secondary carrier or conveyor plate, the same being normally separated, however, by the intervening stationary supporting plate 22. Said stationary supporting plate 22 is provided in itsupper portion and in alignment with the path of movement of the outer row of recesses or openings 27 of the primary carrier or conveyor plate with a single transfer opening 34 of a size and length suflicient to accommodate the largest as well as the smallest coin which may be carried over the same by said primary carrier or conveyor plate; and in like manner said stationary supporting plate is also provided in alignment with -the path of movement of the inner row of recesses or openings 28 of said primary carrier or conveyor plate20'with a similar single transfer opening 35.

In order to further insure against more recesses or openings 27"28 of the primary carrier or convfir plate 20 to the transfer openings 3435' thestationary supporting plate 22 there is provided a shear-plate S having an oblique chamfered edge s positioned in advanceof the location of said transfer This shear-plate S fits .closely overthe surface of said primary car rier or conveyer plate 20, so that as-thei'ree 7 openings 34-35.

cesses or openings 2728 pass beneath the same any o verlying or piled coins will be sheared off and thrown back into the'lower portion of the hopper.

The lower portion of the base plate '6 is provided with outer and inner-rows of discharge openings progressively graded in width to correspond to and respectively pass coins ofthe size of dimes, pennies, nickels, quarters and, half dollars, said respective reference characters 36, 38, 39 and 40, and

the outer row thereof bv'the reference characters 36, 31, 38, 39, and 40. Secured to the underside of said base plate 6 so as to be registered beneath said discharge openings is a discharge chute member 41 subdivided by partitions 42 to provide discharge paths aligned beneath the respective openings of said rows thereof adapted to serve a given denomination of coin' Said chute member is so disposed that suitable receptacles 43 may be placed beneath the outer ends thereof to receive the coins discharged therethrough.

In operation a quantity of mixed coins of different denominations are deposited in the lower end of the holder 23. The motor 11 being set in operation, power is transmitted therefrom to the spindle 10, whereby the primary and secondary carrier or conveyer plates and 21 are respectively rotated in the direction of the arrow shown in Figure 3.

; As theprimary carrier or conveyer plate discharge openings of the base-platemoves beneath the coins deposited within the hopper 23, some of said coins will deposit themselves within the recesses or openings 27-28 and will be carried upward'over the stationary supporting plate 22, excess coins being removed and returned to the hopper by engagement with the deflector disk 30 or the shear-plate S as the case may be. Continued movement of the primary carrier or conveyer plate 20 will propel the coins properly lodged within the recesses or openings 2728 over the transfer openings 34- -35 of the stationary supporting partition or plate 22, through, which the coins will successively drop into corresponding pockets 32 -33 of the underlying secondary carrier or conveyer plate 21. The rotation of the secondary carrier or conveyer plate 21 will carry the coins thus deposited in its pockets 32-33 in flatwise position downwardly and ultimately over the underlying discharge openings of the base plate 6. The said pockets 3233 are preferably of substantially rectangular shape and radially disposed relative to the aXis of rotation. As the secondary carrier or conveyer plate 21 makes its descent, the coins within the'pockets 32-33 thereof are thrown both by centrifugal force and gravity to the outer limits of the pockets as they are caused by the rotation of the plate toapproach ltlie 1e outer limits of, the pockets 32 and 33 are respectively outwardly spaced beyond'the outer limits of the discharge openings of the base plate over which they travel, and consequent-- ly-.when coins are'engaged by the outer limits of said pockets 32 and 33 they are assured of being properly positioned insuch relation- -ondary carrier or to the inner margins of the discharge openings that coins larger than a proper opening will be properly supported by both sides of the discharge openings smaller-than the said proper opening against accidental sidewise dropping therethrough, and yet when passing over a proper opening will lack support at one side so as to assure immediate dropping through the latter. By this arrangement the coins are maintained in proper control at all times, and can neither escape discharge through a proper discharge opening or accidentally drop through an improper discharge opening. By reason of the fact that each coin is carried in an individual pocket of the secconveyer plate. 21 and against the outer limits of the pocket, the coins are not rolled edge-wise against any stationary part, and consequently Wear and tear both on the coins themselves and stationary parts of the-machine is prevented. Furthermore the coins, once they are deposited in the pockets of said secondary carrier or conveyer plate 21,-are prevented from jumping out of properly propelled position by the'overlying stationary supporting plate 22, and are therefore under perfect control at all times during their movement to the discharge openings of the base plate 6.

Inasmuch as the primary carrier or conveyer plateis utilized merely to convey the coins to the single transfer openings of the stationary supporting plate 22 corresponding to the rows of recesses or openings 27 -28, a greater area of primary carrier or conveyer plate may be left exposed for move ment through the mass of coins deposited in the hopper and consequently a more positive and speedier pickup and delivery of coins may be attained by said primary carrier or conveyer plate, and the speed of rotation oftlie conveyer plates may be safely increasedtoeifect a more rapid passage of the coins through the assorting devices of the machine.

As many changes could be made in the above described construction and many widely different embodiments of this invenspindle centrally journaled in said base plate,

a pair of axially spaced flat disc-like conveyer plates mounted on said spindle so as to be rotated thereby,-the lower conveyer plate being disposed to ride slidingly on said base plate so as to/discharge coins conveyed thereby through said assorting openings of the latter, a stationary partition plate intermediate said conveyer plates, said conveyer plates having conveyer openings to receive and carry coins singly and flatwise therein, the openings of said lower-conveyer plate being aligned respectively with corresponding openings of said upper conveyer plate,- and said partition plate having a transfer opening aligned-in the path of movement of the conveyer openings of said conveyer plates,

said transfer opening being positioned in advance of the asserting openings whereby 1 coins are transferred from conveyer openings of ;the upper conveyer plate to corree sponding conveyer openings of the lower conopenings of the latter,

slidingly on said base plate so as to deliver coins conveyed thereby to said assorting' a stationary partition plate intermediate said conveyer plates, said conveyer plates having conveyer openings to.

receive'and carry coins singly and flatwise therein, the openings of said lower conveyer plate'being aligned respectively with corresponding openings of said upper conveyer I plate, and said partition plate having a transi being aligned respectively fer opening in' its upper portion aligned in rectangular shape and sol-elated to the assorting openin s ofsaid base plate that coins carried in the of gravity adapted to produce sidewise movement thereof whereby the same are assured of being properly positioned to escape ormer are sub ect to'influence through said asserting openings when carried across the same.

In testimony that I claim-theinvention set forth above I have hereunto set my hand EDWARD P. DQNNELLAN.

this 14th day of September, 1927.

the path of movement of the conveyer openi ings of said conveyer plates. Y

3. In a coin assorting machine, an inclined base plate provided with assortingopenings along its lower portion adapted to discharge coins'therethrough selectively as to size, and means to convey coins to be sorted to'andfor discharge through said assorting open-1 lngs, comprising a pair of axially spaced flat disc-like" conveyer plates respectively having openings to receive single coins flatwise therein, means commonto said conveyer plates for rotating the same, the lower conveyer plate being disposed to ride slidilngly on said base-plate so as to deliver coins conveyed thereby to said assort- 1ng openings of the latter, a stationary partition plate intermediate said conveyer plates, the openings of said lower conveyer plate with corresponding openings of said upper conveyer plate,

' said partition plate having a transfer open- 111g in its upper portion aligned in the pathof movement of the conveyer openings of said conveyer plates, said openings of said lower conveyer plate being of substantially lUQ'. 

